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Earl Roderick dispatched Sirs Robert, William, Hilfbert, and Blewydd to aid a druid in a quest of apparent significance. On their way to a magical fountain the companions fight a giant, Sir Robert bravely slaying the beast only to see it return to its true form, a human child. The druid also proves to be a royal pain, causing even the pious pagan Sir Robert to punch the old man. Once they arrive at the fountain, the knights find it guarded by a fire-breathing drake. Perhaps trying to redeem himself from earlier, Sir Robert bravely faces the beast, but is laid low in a similar fashion to his brother five years earlier. Ultimately the knights kill the beast, allowing the druid safe access to the fountain, where he apparently strips the witch the knights are very familiar with from her magic. The head of the drake is carried to Sarum where it is hung on the wall of the great hall in memory of brave Sir Robert. After the peace between Duke Gorlois of Cornwall and King Uther, the safety of Logres seemed assured. In Salisbury however, men and women had gone missing, and Earl Roderick ordered the newly knighted Sir Reginald, Sir Lavender the Dragonbane, as well as Sirs Devon and Dankmar to investigate these events, led by the veteran Sir Dacien of Burcombe. The party found the cause of the disappearances, though paid a heavy price for it. The party was ambushed and Sirs Devon and Dacien were killed by the mysterious attackers. The survivors were captured and brought to the leader of the bandits, no other than Praetor Syagrius himself! Praetor Syagrius, along with the survivors of his army, had made his way to Britain to exact revenge on the men that betrayed him. His anger had stripped him of much of his reason and turned him cold and cruel, and he ordered Sirs Reginald, Lavender, and Dankmar imprisoned with the other captives from Salisbury. Sir Reginald almost got himself killed trying to escape, and Sir Dankmar sacrificed himself holding off the Praetor’s men, but the two knights managed to escape the camp with the majority of the prisoners. They arrived in Sarum to find that while they were gone, word had come from King Uther calling all his banners to march north. Wasting no time, the pair rode to catch up with the army. While Sir Reginald and Sir Lavender were being held captive, the Saxons that had rampaged through Malahaut and ran the mighty northern kingdom to the ground turned their attention to the south. Leading a mighty host of 10,000 warriors, the kings Octa and Eosa marched to do battle with the Cymric people. King Uther’s army, now reinforced by the powerful duchy of Cornwall, numbered 5,000 footmen and 2,000 knights. The two armies joined battle near the city of Lindsey, where Merlin also made an appearance to unnerve the Saxon host. Great was the butcher’s bill, and both Sir William and Sir Hilfbert were brought low in the battle, the latter rescued by what could only be a miracle from holy God. Sir Blewydd rode to battle unarmored, showing disdain for his enemies that would become the stuff of legends, a true exemplar of knighthood, and Sir Rhowain acquitted himself honorably in combat, claiming the Saxon standard at the end of the battle. This act of heroism allowed Sir Blewydd and Sir Rhowain to partake in the victory celebrations with the king, managing to also invite Sir William, where they witnessed Duke Gorlois’ wife the fair lady Ygraine dance and sing, and were struck by her beauty. They were not alone in this, as many drunken and victorious nobles applauded Ygraine’s performance, but to the sharp eyes of the three knights, Uther alone seemed ensorcelled. After the celebrations had lasted several days, Sirs Reginald and Lavender arrived at Lindsey, just in time for the army to march to Eburacum, the chief city of Malahaut. The Centurion King and Uther met in peace, and soon the pair and their formidable escorts rode to the fortified city of Catterick on the border of Malahaut. Here they were soon joined by other northern lords, most notable among them King Lot of Lothian and King Nentres of Garloth. While the high and mighty of the land conversed, the fellowship of Salisbury exchanged tales and engaged in mock battles, and the resourceful squire Tyrone invented a new way of preparing pork, a dish he named bacon, in the Frankish way. Eventually the fellowship was summoned to the king’s presence and asked to recount the tale of Excalibur, which the king seemed to thoroughly enjoy. Around this time strange rumors also began to circulate the camp, telling of assassins and knights defecating on ladies. Though everyone seemed to have heard of them and swore to know someone who had seen them, no one actually had seen either. As the year turned toward its end, and with the north united under the Pendragon, the army of Logres made its way back to London. Uther’s vassals left one after another, though Cornwall and few others were not allowed leave. The king’s actions towards the duke’s wife were most inappropriate, and as winter fell the Cornishmen made their escape with the assistance of Lady Nineve’s magic. This breach of hospitality sent Uther into a rage, and word soon turned to war. As winter covered the lands of Logres, more fierce than any in living memory, the fellowship still found comfort in each others company. But the year’s trials and tribulations were not over, as they were joined by the witch, bearing dread news from the west, something preying on travelers in the Selwood. Though skeptical, the knights could not in good conscience leave innocents to their fates, and the witch also promised to return the skull of Saint Logain which she had stolen from the Grand Cathedral in Sarum. Sirs Lavender, Reginald, William, Rhowain and Hilfbert rode to Vagon Castle to meet with their old mentor Sir Elad. As the party ventured into Selwood, they discovered a young girl, abandoned and frightened, right before running into a merchant caravan with no living beings, but all the possessions left untouched. They were suddenly set upon by mysterious beings, man-like in appearance but tall and slender, their appendages like tendrils without a discernable end. Though the five managed to escape, they had a good idea what had happened to the travelers. Upon their return to Vagon Castle, they were met by Sir Blewydd, who had come to aid them at Sir Elad’s request. The six, now reunited, made their way north where they met with the Fae Knight who had warned them of the witch all those years ago. The Fae Knight told them the name of their dread foe, the Devourer in the Mist, and enchanted their swords, allowing them to defend themselves from the Devourer’s servants. They also met the witch once more, and she imparted her sorcery on their shields, a spell that would be greatly required very soon. The six knights made their way back into the forest, and after a day of travel made camp. Alas, Sir Blewydd was caught by the fiendish foe of all watchmen, sleep, and they all woke to find their mounts gone. Though they were left mountless, their goal was not far. The knights found a pulsating wound in the air, surrounded by a pool of vile pus, and were once again set upon by the Devourer’s servants. The battle seemed desperate and Sir Blewydd, exhibiting the bravery for which he was known, sacrificed himself by attacking the apparent root of the infestation. Alas, his efforts seemed to be in vain, and not only his body but also one of the Six Shields was lost! As the knights fought the creatures, each could sense despair in their hearts and feel their sanity itself stripping away. Sir Hilfbert’s faith and the eldritch power of the young girl the knights had previously met ultimately proved enough to close the Devourer’s entrance to the world, but without the brave sacrifice of Sir Blewydd and the great efforts of the rest, the day would surely have been lost. Though victorious, the cost had been high, and the knights had caught a glimpse at something far more threatening than bandits or Saxons. The memory of what they saw would haunt them for a long time… Towards the end of the year, Sir Reginald found a wife. Unfortunately, the rumors of his family being cursed had scared away many of the powerful families of Logres, but the second daughter of an esquire proved to be a skilled wife, beautiful woman, and an exceptional mother, and as spring arrived, the cynical young knight was witnessed to be smiling as the fresh father of twins, a boy and a girl. Category:Years